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Memorandum of Understanding between The George B. Thomas, Sr. Learning Academy, Inc.And MCPS Cluster Schools

MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING

BETWEEN THE GEORGE B.THOMAS,SR.LEARNINGACADEMY,INC.AND THE SATURDAY SCHOOL CENTER CLUSTER PRINCIPALS

OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

The purpose of this Memorandum of Understanding is to clearly define what is expectedof the cluster principals of the schools in the Montgomery County Public School System(MCPS) participating in The George B. Thomas, Sr. Learning Academy, Inc. tutoringand mentoring program. The Saturday School centers are located at the following highschool sites: (1) Sherwood High School; (2) Springbrook High School; (3) Paint BranchHigh School (which also serves the James H. Blake High School cluster of schools inthe North East Consortium); (4) John F. Kennedy High School; (5) Northwest HighSchool (6) Blair High School; (7) Gaithersburg Middle School (for the 2011-12 programyear); (8) Wheaton High School; (9) Albert Einstein High School; (10) Watkins Mill HighSchool; (11) Magruder High School; and (12) Rockville High School. Historically, theOlney-Sandy Spring Saturday School at Sherwood High School is an outgrowth of the

original Olney Saturday School established in 1986.

In order for Saturday School to provide tutoring and mentoring support to an increasednumber of students, all cluster school principals and the Community Superintendentsidentified in this document must engage in collaborative efforts to carry out the elementsoutlined in this "Memorandum of Understanding." Evidence now shows that this highlystructured after-school program is improving the academic performance of children andbuilding students' self-esteem and self-confidence. As in the past, Saturday School willcommence operating the school year with a training program for tutors, and anorientation and registration program at each center for parents. The 2011-2012comprehensive calendar for Saturday School outlines our program for the year to be

conducted at each of the twelve Saturday School centers.

The Learning Academy agrees to aggressively make the Saturday School programsupportive of the local school without imposing additional time-consuming duties andadministrative details involved in the implementation of this after-school program. In thisregard, Saturday School is designed to be Iocal-school friendly and supportive." TheSaturday School further agrees to provide periodic feedback to keep principals,teachers, parents, and students informed of students' academic progress and level ofattendance in the Saturday School program.

Working as partners in the pursuit of excellence in education, the principals in this

memorandum of understanding agree to commit resources and exercise their influencesamong parents, parent groups (e.g. PTSA), and the community to support and promotethe Saturday School program serving their school community by:

1. Publicizing Saturday School directly to parents and students by distributing SaturdaySchool flyers and registration forms, including information and announcements in:

PTA bulletins Principals newsletters Parent conferences

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Memorandum of Understanding between The George B. Thomas, Sr. Learning Academy, Inc.And MCPS Cluster Schools

New student registration School mailings Connect Ed messages School message boards (at host high school sites)

2. Creating a link to the Saturday School website (www.saturdayschool.org) from allhome school websites.

3. Counseling parents and students to enroll in Saturday School and facilitating theenrollment process.

4. Recruiting volunteer tutors from all sources throughout the year. This is the greatestneed of Saturday School, and the goal is to obtain year-long commitments from atleast ten individuals per center.

5. Identifying certified teachers to serve as paid lead tutors (ratio 1 tutor to 19students). The goal of Saturday School is to have a smaller tutor to student ratio byutilizing volunteer tutors. Our ratio target is one tutor to every three students.

6. Encouraging communication between the home school and the Saturday Schoolcluster sites.

7. Include Saturday School as a strategy in their school improvement plans asappropriate, and targeting students most in need.

8. Assisting Saturday School staff to identify qualified individuals for center directorposition openings.

9. Identifying highly able secondary students to serve as volunteer tutors in ourprogram. Senior students may become eligible candidates to receive The George B.Thomas, Sr. Learning Academy, Inc High Achievement Scholarship sponsored byVerizon Maryland through volunteering or by being a participant in the SaturdaySchool program.

10.Providing Saturday School staff with access to a resource/storage room, computerlab, telephone, a mailbox for the center director, photocopy machine and paper,walkie-talkies, and a conference/workroom. (for host high school sites)

The above activities are incorporated into the Saturday School Semester ReviewProcess, distributed to all cluster principals.

This memorandum of understanding is signed by the parties shown who share acommon belief that partnerships among cluster schools and the Saturday Schoolprogram will result in high-quality after-school programs for students.

Revised 8/6/11

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